Chapter 9 Hunters in Transition Sámi Hearth Row Sites, Reindeer Economies and the Organization of Domestic Space, 800–1300 a.d.

The Archaeology of Reindeer Domestication and Herding Practices in Northern Fennoscandia

“…At that time, reindeer herding was probably practiced by some Sámi communities at offering places in a vast geographical area of northern Fennoscandia (Salmi et al 2018; see also Bergman et al 2013;Hedman et al 2015). Settlement patterns indicate that wild reindeer hunting continued to affect habitation patterns (Halinen et al 2013;Hedman et al 2015;Seitsonen and Viljanmaa 2021). The presence of wild mammal and bird bones in faunal assemblages (Hedman et al 2015) further emphasizes the importance of hunting in this period.…”

“…The archaeological faunal assemblages analyzed thus far do not go back far enough in time to precisely define the role of draught reindeer in incipient reindeer domestication among the Sámi. However, it is possible that the subsistence adaptation observed at the studied sites from the 14th century onward resembles that of the early reindeer herders, because early reindeer herders employed a similar set of mixed subsistence strategies as the Sámi in the studied sites (e.g., Halinen et al 2013;Hedman et al 2015;Vretemark 2019).…”

“…Historical studies of the development of reindeer herding have mostly focused on the post-16th century period (e.g., Hultblad 1968;Kortesalmi 2008;Lundmark 1982;Tegengren 1952). The analysis of changes in settlement patterns and their social implications for the development or herding societies (e.g., Aronsson 1991;Bergman et al 2013;Halinen et al 2013;Hedman et al 2015;Seitsonen and Viljanmaa 2021) have been especially prominent avenues of archaeological research on the matter in the Fennoscandian research tradition. Many studies of reindeer domestication also typically combine ethnographic, historical, and archaeological sources (e.g., Bjørklund 2013;Wallerström 2000).…”

“…In addition, the so-called hearth row sites (also rectangular hearth sites), dating to ca. AD 600/700-1300 and situated in inland northern Fennoscandia, are considered by most researchers to be cold-season settlements of reindeer herders, although the evidence is ambiguous and may also point to the importance of hunting and fishing (Bergman et al 2013;Halinen et al 2013;Hedman et al 2015;Olsen 2019;Seitsonen and Viljanmaa 2021). Researchers have also argued that the roots of the family-based siida organization of Sámi society can be traced back to this period (Bergman et al 2013;Halinen et al 2013;Hedman et al 2015).…”

“…AD 600 and AD 1400 (Seitsonen and Viljanmaa 2021). Reindeer feeding and pasture rotation needs also affected people's lives, as the analysis of the settlement patterns of the early reindeer herders implies that the proximity of good-quality lichen pastures and bogs was already an important factor in the selection of the winter settlement sites between AD 900 and AD 1300 (Halinen et al 2013;Hedman et al 2015;Seitsonen and Viljanmaa 2021). From the 15th century onward, major changes in site locations and features indicate a transition to nomadic pastoralism with high residential mobility (Halinen 2016;Mulk 1994;Seitsonen and Viljanmaa 2021).…”